Bolton to chair senior services board

Doug Bolton has been appointed chairman of the Newton County Senior Services Board.Bolton has been an active volunteer in Newton County, including a two-year stint as director of the community service group Hands on Newton. Bolton is retired but regularly volunteers for Habitat for Humanity and the Miracle League.

"For me, when you live in a community and you're asked to do something that might be able to help the community, you do it," Bolton said in a Wednesday phone interview.

He was approved for the post in a vote Tuesday by the Newton County Board of Commissioners.

Bolton will help the county assess how the senior services board should operate, including whether it should focus on raising funds and whether it should study and attempt to address senior issues on a community level. Lack of participation and confusion about duties had hindered prior boards.

The county and the non-profit senior services organization signed a memorandum of understanding in July to clarify their relationship. Under the agreement, senior services must:- Develop and provide an outline of programs and services and any planned changes each year.- Provide quarterly reports about programs, the number of people served, sources of funding and fundraising activities.- Maintain certifications to provide senior meals, home-delivery meals and senior wellness programs.- Provide requests for money, including invoices, to the county on an as-needed basis

Chairman Kathy Morgan said previously that senior services also needed to tackle two key issues:- A lack of space in the Turner Lake Complex senior facility.- A lack of money to pay for increasing demand of senior services.

Bolton said he has worked with Josephine Brown, senior services' executive director. He said he plans to study senior services and touch base with current and past board members.